Your Family Eagerly Awaits!

Dear Daughter,
We really hoped we were going to meet you before the end of 2011.  Although it was hard not having you here our family really let us know how much they are all excited to bring you home.  You received your first  doll from my cousin and your first stuffed animal from grandma this Christmas.  They all ask about you and share in our excitement for your arrival.  I hope you will have someone to share Christmas with on January 7th(Ethiopian Christmas celebration).  It makes me very sad to think you might be alone.
The love of my family reminded me why we began this process in the first place.  We want to share the abundance of love this family has with you!  I hope it won't be long.  We love you already.

Love,
Mom and Dad 

Merry christmas by third day

Referrals went out today!

Well.. the dry spell didn't last too long!  Two referrals went out today for baby boys.  It is so exciting to see another family that you have been in contact with receive their referral.  Pure Joy!  One of these days it will be us.  And you can believe I will be shouting it from the roof tops.

Great way to end the day!
DMM

Five Months Waiting!

     It looks like we have hit another dry spell!???  Haven't heard about any referrals in a few weeks.  NOTHING!  I am thankful that there is a lot going on right now to keep our minds from dwelling on it too much.  We have had 4 concerts to go to in two weeks along with, decorating the house, cookie making, end of quarter school projects and SHOPPING! It is usually when I lay in bed at night or in the morning I am still dreaming of what our little girl is going to be like and if she is safe and happy now. Usually it's all day long that I think about her.  So, I am thankful that the Christmas Rush is keeping me sane!

Happy Shopping!
DMM 

Age Range

     After speaking with Children's Hope International today, we decided to expand our age range again to 2-6 years.  We started out at 3-4 years, then 3-5, now 2-6years.  We are now at are maximum age range before we would have to redo some paperwork.  The reason we decided to change is complicated.  Essentially the broader your age range and other preferences the quicker the referral.  We chose the age that we did so that she will be as close to MVM's age as possible with still being young enough that the adjustment won't be so difficult for her.  I hope we are still fitting that criteria.  MVM says that he just wants to be a big brother and maybe be able to pick her up.  How cute is that?
It has been quiet on the referral front last week and this week.  Hopefully that will change real soon!

Until next time,
DMM   

Kisses from Katie.mp4

The Count Down!

     MVM  is pointing out our current number on the waiting list.  Over the Thanksgiving holiday, my family, including: my aunt, uncle, cousins, sister, nieces, brother-in-law, mom, sons, and husband all participated in writing little prayers or messages to our daughter-to-be on each of the little Africa's that represent our place on the waiting list.  Each of those Africa's is a family waiting to adopt a child from Ethiopia.  We are currently number 47.  We started almost 5 months ago at 53.  Hopefully that number isn't as bad as it sounds.  There was a 4 month lull in the process when nothing was happening.  There has definitely been much more action this month.  Thank you for all your support family!  

We love you dearly!

The Maley Clan

Good things!

    No whining this week!  I am remembering all of the things I have to be thankful for (since it is Thanksgiving week).  There is nothing like counting your blessings to snap you out of a funk.  I have so much to be thankful for and I know our daughter will come, it's just a matter of time.  

Meanwhile, we are trying to come up with a middle name for her.  Up until last week we planned to use her given name.  What I never really thought about is that she won't have a middle name.  My pediatrician pointed that out when I had the youngest two boys in for their immunizations.  I got so excited because that is something we can actually do right now.  No waiting!  So we have pulled out the baby name books and are coming up with a list.  It would be nice to have something to call her instead of "sister."

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving Holiday!

See ya next week,

DMM

Keep life normal!????

...That is the advice we are given as "waiting adopting parents".  "Try to go on with life as you normally would."  I find that to be the most ridiculous request.  Waiting to adopt a child is the most abnormal experience I have ever had to live through for such a long period of time.  The anticipation of "the referral" and the events that follow invades every aspect of our family's life.
We skipped our family vacation last summer so that we could use that money for the adoption.  We are really feeling the need to plan one this year because that time with each other is so important to us.  So, how do we plan it?  We really believed that our next family vacation would include our daughter.  Do we plan it in hopes that she will be here by then or do we wait to make sure she will be here?

My cousin is getting married in California next September.  We won't be able to take the kids, and if our daughter is here we wouldn't be able to leave her that soon.  Can we definitely bank on her being here by then?  No, we can't.  Can't make plans because we don't know.

My son worries in the back of his mind about the week we will be gone to Ethiopia.  It has given him an underlying current of anxiety that makes him worry about a lot of other things.  All of the reassurance in the world will not appease his concerns and so he lives his daily life stressed out.

I am obsessed with finding any scrap of information I can on other blogs.  I spend more time than I would like scouring the Ethiopia blogs that I follow.  I battle myself between trying to get the adoption off my mind and letting myself be excited about bringing our daughter home.

We were at DQ the other night and all 6 of us squeezed into a booth.  One of the boys said, "What are we going to do when sister gets here, we won't be able to fit!"  Then, MBM said,"that's Ok she can sit on my lap."  I just wanted to hug him and cry because I don't want him to miss out on those moments.

We need her home NOW!  The only way life is going to feel normal for this family is if we have our little girl home with us.  We have carved out a place in all of our hearts for her and we need her here to fill it in!  We are praying and would love it if you would pray with us to "get this show on the road!"
Love,
DMM

4 Months Waiting!

Even though we are still waiting, the latest developments in the Ethiopia adoption program have really made us hopeful that things are moving in the right direction again.  The four months between referrals was really unprecedented so we felt  pretty concerned.  Now that there have been 2 referrals in 5 days, we are hopeful that things might get rolling again.

I also wanted to clarify to people what being on the waiting list really means.  It may sound like we are waiting for children to become orphans, but actually we are waiting for orphans to become adoptable.  There are millions of orphans in Ethiopia, but the process for them to become adoptable is somewhat tedious.  Obtaining birth certificates for the child or maybe a death certificate for their deceased parents can be really time consuming in Ethiopia.  Most children do not have that kind of paperwork.  There are agency representatives in Ethiopia that track down these documents.  Getting one birth certificate may take a whole day of travel.  Therefore the wait!

Thanks for checking in!
DMM

Celebrating Orphan Sunday!

We celebrated orphan Sunday last night by going to see the African Children's Choir.   We didn't know what to expect and we were blown away!  I know it's a good thing when my teenagers are impressed.  All of it was spectacular, but we were all especially impressed with the drummers.  Wow!  If you ever get the opportunity to see them, it is well worth your time.
Adoption news:
There was another referral this week, which means we climb another rung of the ladder!  Yeah!

Have a great day!
DMM

Moving up the Ladder!

Great News! Apparently this news came out on Monday and for some reason I didn't receive the email. There was a referral of a 5 month old baby girl made this week to a family using our agency. The first referral in 4 months! We are hoping that this means there will more to come soon! The courts re-opened sometime in the second week of October. We have officially bumped up to waiting list #51.

It is such a relief to have some good news to tell after that long wait.

Thanks for checkin in'
DMM

Generosity!

I am humbled today! Yesterday we received an inspiring letter in the mail along with a check to support our adoption. I am so touched that the couple who sent it to us believes so much in what we are doing to hand over their own hard-earned money to make it happen. They knew we were applying for grants and that we had not been having much luck. I feel honored that they trust that we will see this journey through until we bring our little girl home where we will share with her all our families' blessings.
I feel like I am a charitable person, but now I think I will always think of them when I am deciding how much to give!
Thank you so much for your generosity and kindness! (you know who you are!)
DMM & MTM

Encouragement!

In general I write my blog to keep my family and friends up to date with our adoption but I know there are many bloggers out there who read each others updates to get information or encouragement to keep forging ahead on the road to adoption. And, since I do not have any updates to give I thought encouragement should be the way to go this week.
Even though the Ethiopia adoption program is going through some tough times right now, I think we can keep in perspective that there have always been bumps in the road. I am sure last year when they added a second trip many families feared that financially they wouldn't be able to make it work. After all, that adds another $5000.00 to the cost. Yikes! My point is that there will always be bumps in the road but the kind of people who sign up for this adventure will have the drive, perseverance, and faith to get through it. Don't doubt it! Our agency has said time and again that they have never had a family that in the end did not bring home a child. Our burden to bear is "the wait"! I have been trying to put it to good use...getting my house in good shape(so I don't have to be embarrassed when my mom is here watching my children), learning how to cook with Berbere spice, trying to speak some Amharic phrases, and trying to prepare myself and my family emotionally for the challenges when she comes home. There is a lot to do so get to it!

I hope that helps!
Have a great day,
DMM

Ethiopia Update!

Well....we had our conference call yesterday. I definitely feel reassured that our agency is doing all that they can. There wasn't a lot of information that I didn't already know. I did find out about the changes in our agency that I was concerned about though. They are definitely scaling back on the Ethiopia program because of the "slow down" in the adoption process. There was a coordinator let go and the House of Hope(the place where families can stay while in Ethiopia) is being closed, and office hours are being cut back. The explanation for these cut-backs is that there are just less families coming into the program and slower movement through the program. So, naturally they need to follow the changes. Makes sense. We were told that things are moving it is just taking more time due to the extra documentation that the U.S. Embassy is asking for. I can't complain because all of the extra precautions are good ones. We will get our daughter home, it just might take longer than we had hoped.
I am changing my perspective on the wait. I was rereading "The New Earth" for the hundredth time and something hit home. In summary Tolle says that we need to not look at the journey as a means to an end. The path to the goal is some of the best parts of life. Embrace every moment and be present in that moment.
Thanks for your prayers!

Until next time,
DMM

Tracy Chapman - The Promise

3 Months Waiting

As of October 7th we have been waiting 3 months for our referral.  I have to say there are things that have been going on that are really concerning me.  I don't feel comfortable talking specifics right now but the final concern was an email that we received yesterday.  Our agency has scheduled a conference call for families in the "waiting for a referral stage" of the adoption process.  Part of me wants to believe that it is to tell us not to get discouraged about the lack of referrals.  The other part of me is scarred to death that we are getting some really bad news.   The wait for that meeting on Wednesday is going to seem like an eternity.  Living with all of the unknowns is really difficult.
In the adoption world three months is not a long time to wait.  Families waiting to adopt an infant are told to expect 9-12 months waiting time.  We were told that a referral for a child in our age range could be immediate to a couple of months at the longest.  We never thought to doubt that information.  In fact, the planner that I am, I thought the whole process through with that time in mind.  I really hoped for our daughter to get here as soon as possible so that she will have time with her oldest twin brothers before they go off to college.  They are sophomores in high school and I feel the clock ticking.  We have 2 and half years left.  It makes me very sad to think that she may hardly remember when they lived in our house.  I know that they will be awesome big brothers and have a lot of love to give!  She will be a blessing in their lives as well and I don't want them to miss out on her life with us.  I am not going to give up on that  hope!
I am going to ask again for your prayers for good news on Wednesday and a referral soon!

Thanks for checkin' in
DMM

September 27, 2011

I don't have anything that exciting to tell you today, on the other hand, there could be some good things going on today.  There is a meeting happening today that will involve the American Embassy in Ethiopia and Adoption representatives from many agencies that will discuss current procedures in Ethiopia and other African countries.  They meet quarterly.  I am hoping that they will be able to reveal some of the reasons for the lack of referrals, slow down in granting visas, etc. that have been going on over the last few months.  I am praying that this meeting will bring good news.  Please say a little prayer today for all of the children and families who will be affected by this meeting.

Thank you,
DMM

September 20, 2011

Saturday was one of the lowest days I have had since our journey began.  I was really letting too many "what if's" cloud my thinking and really ended up in a funk.  MTM admitted that he was feeling the same way.  The wait feels so unnecessary sometimes for our sake and our daughter's.  We feel so ready that we ache for her.  I can only imagine her aching for a family to love and care for her.  It is easy to get lost in those thoughts.  That is when I try to remind myself that it is impossible for us to see the big picture and there must be good reason for this time until she comes home.  I also remind myself that I believe with my whole heart that we are meant to adopt a child into our home so we must accept that waiting is part of the process.

It became easier to put these reminders into action when I heard myself telling my son the very same thing about getting used to his new school.  I told him that first he needed to accept that this is what he is required to do everyday.  It is part of growing up to deal with change.  Take it one day at a time.

I could apply all of that to myself in dealing with my funk.  It's funny how these life lessons can come in all sorts of packages.  

So, I am done with my funk and I am moving ahead with preparations for our daughter.  I hope it isn't too long or she is going to end up with one gaudy, overly pink and polka dotted bedroom.  

Until next time,

DMM  

September 15, 2011

Our journey to adoption began after our family participated in a food pack with Kids Against Hunger.  We each were teary-eyed and inspired by the leader of our local branch, Larry Bergeron.  He has a great passion for the work he does and he spreads it amongst those who visit the factory.  This is on my mind today because the factory is preparing for a Grand Opening at their new location on Kemper Road in Sharonville on Saturday September 24, 2011.  There will be 3 food packing sessions that day with hundreds of volunteers throughout the day.  The food being packed that day will be headed for Somalia (The Horn of Africa) to help those affected by the drought.
Come see what it is all about!  No doubt you will be positively affected by the event!  Hit the button to the side to link to their website.

Have a great Day!
DMM

September 7, 2011

Today marks 2 months on the waiting list.  Although we didn't think we would have to wait this long, we have found purpose in the wait.  Making sure the kids are settled into the new school year has been my priority.  It usually takes a few weeks to get everyone in a routine.  Our priority as a family has been to find a church that helps each of us find our connection.  We had quite a list of things that the we each were looking for and I think we have finally found it.  Another purpose I have seen building in MTM and the boys is the excitement for our daughter's arrival.  I feel like they will be bursting at the seams soon, like I have been feeling for the past year and half.  The questions about her come so frequently, and AMM said he had a really great dream about her coming home the other night.  I hope she feels this same excitement that we do.  I hope somewhere in her heart she knows we are coming for her.
MVM has had a little anxiety about us leaving for Ethiopia.  He hasn't had that many occasions that we have been away for more than one night.  I reassured him that grammy would do everything just like mom and we will be able to Skype while we are there.  Not the same, but much better that telephone calls.    
We feel soooo ready for her to come home!

Keep her in your prayers!
DMM

August 30, 2011

We keep getting reassurance from our adoption agency that the Ethiopia Adoption program is going through some minor adjustments (for the better) which is causing the delay in referrals.  I feel confident that they are doing all they can for all of their adopting families.  We have to trust and let go!
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you....Do not let your hearts be troubled.-John 14:27

Thank you for your support in the Ordinary Hero contest!  We didn't win but still made our 40% from the sales.  Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

Kids Against Hunger is having its Grand Opening in the new building in Sharonville on Kemper Road on September 24th!  The money being raised right now is for food going to Somalia via World Help.

Peace !
DMM

P.S.  I almost forgot to mention that I found Berbere spice at Findlay Market on Sunday.  There was a booth there called Colonel De- Gourmet Herbs & Spices.  I was really excited because this stuff is hard to find.  Even at Ethiopian restaurants they tell you they order it from home.  I felt like I struck gold.  We hope this will help our daughter adjust to all of the newness in her life if we have some reminders of her first home.  Berbere spice is very common and used on many different foods.

Our Adoption Fund Raising

We are raising funds for our adoption through an awesome company called ORDINARY HERO.  It reminds me a little bit of the TOMS company.  They sell items to raise money for the less fortunate in our country and abroad.  They are giving us 40% of  each item sold in our name to help us raise money for our adoption.  PLUS!  Now until Sunday they are having a contest.  Top sellers in 1 week can get a bonus $500.  It is a great opportunity for us.  Check out the website.  They have a lot of info about who they are and what they do.  If you decide to purchase anything please look for my name in the Affiliate drop down list. Deena Maley.  www.ordinaryherostore.org

August 18, 2011

Back to school!

Back to the daily routine.  We may have been a week or so shy of feeling totally bored and ready to go back, but everyone has jumped in head first anyway.  JAM is doing great in his first days of middle school.  He has had no major catastrophes, which I consider a success.  He comes home very overwhelmed, tired, and crabby.  Just what I would expect!  MVM started missing his big brother at school today.  He was supposed to get on the bus for the first time by himself this morning, but as luck would have it, he needed one more supply that we had to run out for this morning, so I took him in.  The look of relief said it all.  MBM and AMM have had a great start.  They actually have classes together this year which they were very excited about.

No news on the adoption front.  We have been on the waiting list for 5 weeks and 4 days.  I am coming around with my patience.  It is something I really have to work hard at.  It really helps to be back in the routine of school because my mind is occupied with everyday stuff.  I have let go of my worries about  the inability to plan for our trip to Ethiopia when we are called.  I am not very good at asking for help to begin with but then having to tell my mom that she may or may not need to save vacation time for us this year is really difficult.  We have to be flexible enough to handle that a major life-changing event could happen in a few weeks or many months.  I go back and forth from getting totally immersed in learning the culture, language, and adoption issues that we will need to be familiar with to trying not to think too much about it so that the time will go faster.  It is definitely a head game.  I am trying to see if I can find a middle ground.  I will let you know when I get there!

Thanks for checkin' in!
DMM 

Official Court Closing August 8th

The Ethiopian Courts close during the rainy season.  It is a date that changes every year within a few days. This year they will officially close Monday August 8th.    The courts will reopen sometime between the end of September and the first week of October.  No official business can occur during this time.  Referrals can still happen and hopefully they will.  Also, approval letters from MOWCYA can still be written during this time.  We were also given an update from our agency that the slow down in referrals has occurred because the orphanages themselves are taking more time to check into the child's background information.  They want to ensure that there are no living relatives that would want to take care of the children.  So they are waiting a bit before they send referrals to the agency.  All of the changes being made in the program are  needed improvements to the system to ensure the best possible outcome for the children.

All in good time!
DMM

August 5, 2011

We had our first Ethiopian (Eritrean) meal last night.  We went to Emanu in Pleasant Ridge.  The owners are actually from Eritrea, but the food is the same.  We had a wonderful waitress who answered as many questions as we could fire at her.  She asked me if I was Greek and I told her that I was Italian.  She explained to us about the Italian occupation in Ethiopia and Eritrea.  She actually speaks Italian and said there are many Italian restaurants in Ethiopia and Eritrea.  We tried to use our Amharic phrases that we have learned and she would smile and repeat back the correct pronunciation.  She said that we may be better off learning Italian.  LOL!
The food is eaten "family style".  One large platter with various dishes to try.  No forks and knives needed. You take a piece of Injera (bread),  pinch a bite of food, then pop it in your mouth.  We all loved the Doro Wat (spicy chicken) the best.  No dessert served traditionally, so we ended the meal with some excellent Buna (coffee).  It is very strong but really delicious.  They roast the beans on the spot!
Talking to someone from Ethiopia(Eritrea) was really settling for me.  I felt like it was almost a right of passage or something.  She said that she had considered adopting when she was raising her children because she had seen all of the orphans first hand.  She also offered to let me record her speaking Amharic phrases so we could practice our pronunciation.  I guess we no longer feel like outsiders to the Ethiopian culture and community.  Thank you Emanu staff!

Dehenahunu! Ciao!
DMM

Horn of Africa Drought: Climate change and future impacts on food security

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  Horn of Africa Drought: Climate change and future impacts on food security

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Published: 3 August 2011

East Africa is facing the worst food crisis of the 21st Century. Across Ethiopia, Somalia, and Kenya, 12 million people are in dire need of food, clean water, and basic sanitation. Loss of life on a massive scale is a very real risk, and the crisis is set to worsen over the coming months, particularly for pastoralist communities.

The impact of this crisis will be devastating for these people whose livelihood is dependent on grazing livestock.  Even more devastating will be the eventual lack of drinking water and diseases from contaminated drinking water.

August 3, 2011

Selam!

Minor update!

MTM and I decided yesterday to expand our age range from 3-4 years to 3-5years.   

That's all for now!

DMM

July 26, 2011

Ordinary Hero (button to the right) is a company whose goal is to provide a way for every person to make a difference in the life of a child in need, through adoption, missions, or local outreach.  They also strive to bring public awareness to the orphan crisis.  They sell clothing, jewelry, coffee mugs, etc to raise funds to support their goals. 

We have become an affiliate with the company.  They are allowing us to raise funds for our adoption by giving us 40% of the sale of any item that is purchased in our name.  They will send a check to our adoption agency to put towards our adoption.  We feel very grateful that there is such a company to help us meet our goal.
Check out the site and if you decide to purchase anything, please click on Deena Maley under the affiliate drop down list.

Thanks for checkin' in!
DMM

July 25, 2011

When?  That is the hardest question to answer.  I have asked it many times myself, but the truth is, nobody knows until it happens.  A child has to be placed in an orphanage and found "adoptable" before the orphanage can notify our agency.  The agency is given a list of children who are available for adoption, in the form of a referral, and then the agency goes down their waiting parent list.  There is no predictable timeline that any of these steps happen.  So we wait!  We are currently number 53.  That number doesn't mean much though because different families are waiting for different ages, sex, special needs, etc.


We are trying to make the best use of our wait time by reading lots of books about Ethiopia and parenting adopted children.  MTM and I also went to get our immunizations last Friday.  3 in each arm!  Charged us $450 each for them.  That is like an extra shot in the arm.  Just doesn't seem right, does it?    Good news is we are armed against all diseases known to mankind.  JK!  
I hope it won't be long before I have exciting things to tell! 
Until then,
DMM

07/10/2011

What Dad thinks:

Wow!  After all the past several months of document gathering & submission, this is really starting to seem real!  Good Stuff!   It's been great to have the boys stay engaged over the past several months and we are now feeling like our new addition is almost here!

July 7, 2011 Big Day!

July 7th this year will be a big day for a couple of reasons,  I turned 40, but more importantly we became an official "waiting family".   What a great birthday present.  I really didn't expect this part of the process to be completed so quickly.  I can't believe I am saying that.  We were told to expect it to take a couple of weeks.  What this means is that at any time now we could get a "referral" from our adoption agency.  A referral is medical and historical information and a picture of a child that matches with our family profile.  If we accept the referral then we will prepare for the trip to Ethiopia to adopt that child. YEAH!

Thanks for checkin' in!
DMM

June 28, 2011 WE DID IT!

Wow! It has been a while since I have written.  The waiting is so hard sometimes that I have to put reminders of how long we have to go out of my mind.  We definitely made some huge strides this week!  On May 31st we did our biometric fingerprinting for USCIS.  Then waited until Monday June 27th.  We got our approval letter in the mail.  MTM and I tried to figure out how we would accomplish our next step.  We needed to get a stamp of approval from each notary's county court house.  Little did we know, we had to go to 5 different county court houses yesterday (Hamilton, Clermont, Butler, Warren, and Madison).  We ended our day by taking all of those approvals to Columbus, the Secretary of State of Ohio's office, to get the final seals of approval.  I had six maps with directions, stacks of papers telling me what papers needed to get approved at each court house and a very calm and eager husband to get me through the day.   I can't imagine if I had tried to go it alone.  We started out the day at 9:30 am with just the two of us.  We went to the first 2 court houses and then went home to get our 2 youngest.  They had to endure the rest of the journey with us which included a high stress mom and lots of speeding down the highway.  Our challenge was to get all of this done in one day so that we could get all of our paperwork to our agency before the holiday.  The Ethiopian Courts close from the beginning of August to October, so nothing official can happen during that time.  We are trying to race against that clock.  We made it to Columbus by 4:25 and the office closes at 5pm.  They graciously began collecting all of our papers and checked and stamped them all with no complaints.  We left the building at 5:07 pm.  Whooh!  I reflected on the drive home about all of the nice people we encountered throughout our day and knew that we must have had a guiding hand to make it through all of those hoops!
Today I will make a copy of our Dossier (official name of the stack of official papers) and overnight it to Children's Hope International.  We will be notified in the next few weeks when we are officially on the waiting list for our 3-4 year old girl.  The next phase of waiting begins!  If this process isn't a test of a person's patience, I don't know what is!

Until next time,
DMM

USCIS Appointment Scheduled!

We recieved our appointment letter today!  We are scheduled to have our biometrics taken(fingerprints and pictures) downtown on May 31st.  Another step in the right direction.

 I will keep you posted on what happens after that day.

Thanks for checkin' in!

DMM

Tuesday April 19, 2011

I thought I might go back a few months to explain how we got to this point.  I am sure many of you think, "Why would a family of six want to add another child to their family?"  As a matter of fact, we had to ask ourselves that very question.  It began with a series of events beginning in January of 2010.  We attended our first Kids Against Hunger (www.achildshopeint.org) packing session where we were all blown away by the message about not only hunger around the world, but orphans around the world.  I quickly related the orphan issue to my Grandma (Nan) who in her last weeks of life had so many visitors that I had never known.  Each of them telling the story of how they knew her and many talking about how they had lived with her at some point in their life.  I was so touched by how she had opened up her home to so many people when they had no place to go.  I thought about adoption for weeks, trying to imagine what each member of my family might think (esp. My husband).  I talked to my Mom.  I knew she would understand, because she had once considered adoption when we were kids.  She was very supportive and said if it is meant to be that it will happen.  My husband and I talked and prayed about it for 9 months.  We had discussions with the boys about how they felt and asked them to pray about it too.  Before we made the decision we waited patiently until each of us was on board.  Then came the big questions, girl or boy, how old, from where?  Each of these questions we thought carefully about before making a final decision.

You know the rest of the story!
DMM

Thursday April 14, 2011

Another hurdle to check off the list!
Today we mailed off our U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services petition to classify an orphan as an immediate relative.  This petition, if granted, will allow our daughter to enter the U.S. with us on our way home.  Also, when this petition is granted we will be put on the list for a referral of an Ethiopian child.  This means that we will be sent information about a child that lives in a local orphanage that matches with our family.  If we accept the referral then we travel to Ethiopia to go to court to ask for permission to adopt the child.  Wow!  It really feels like we are getting somewhere today!

DMM    

One For One Movement - A Pair Of New Shoes Is Given To A Child In Need With Every Pair Purchased - TOMS.com

One For One Movement - A Pair Of New Shoes Is Given To A Child In Need With Every Pair Purchased - TOMS.com

Sunday April 10, 2011

We got the official word that our home study has been approved by CHI and we are ready to launch the next step.  YEAH!!!  We also got the official word on Thursday that The Ministry of Women's Affairs in Ethiopia will be reducing the number of adoption files looked at per day to 5.  That is a reduction from around 30-50 in the past.  The point behind this reduction is to ensure that MOWA has exhausted every possibility to ensure that the children do not have any parent or relative that can care for them in Ethiopia.  No one is really sure what this will mean exactly except that things will certainly slow down.  We are just relieved that they didn't completely shut down.  Many countries have gone through similar things and then closed their doors completely.
- That's the latest!

      DMM


"I am only one; but still I am one.  I cannot do everything, but still I can so something; and just because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do something I can do."-Edward Everett Hale

Tuesday April 5, 2011

The process of adoption is the most exciting, scary, and tedious adventure I think our family has ever taken...
 The youngest of our kids think everyday is the day their sister will finally be coming.  I feel the older ones think it will never happen.  We have talked about it for so long that it just seems like a topic of conversation, not something that will REALLY happen at some point in time.
We are well into the process but the time line is so unpredictable.  Right now we are waiting for our immigration application to be approved.  After that we will be able to be put on the waiting list.  We had been looking at a little girl that was on the "waiting child" list, but our paperwork wasn't ready and another family adopted her.  I was happy to see her find a family, but sad that it wasn't us. 
Our girl is still out there looking for us and we are here trying to get through this process so that we can find her!  Your prayers for her and all the orphans around the world would be most appreciated!